Board hears changes to book-review process, administrators outline SB 55 requirements and two-track approvals for novels

Dr. Logan Toon and Michelle Barney briefed the Davis County School District board on a revised process for reviewing novels and other learning materials after the passage of SB 55 in 2023. "There's a 3 pronged definition for, materials," Toon said as he summarized state code and the district's policy distinctions between instructional and supplemental materials.

Toon said instructional materials are those the board adopts for classroom use and therefore require a committee process, public posting or open houses and board approval. He explained practical challenges with copyrighted materials and how the district makes copyrighted instructional resources available to parents through open houses, printed materials where necessary and in-person access. He said the district posts instructional lists online and holds two opportunities for public input before bringing materials to a board meeting.

Michelle Barney, identified in the meeting as the district's English language arts specialist, walked the board through the proposed operational change: rather than one merged list, the district will produce 1) a primary instructional-materials list for whole-class use and 2) a supplemental list for small-group or literature-circle use. "The committee has to have at least 70% approval for a book to be approved and considered instructional material," Barney said, describing the review threshold. She also described the expectation that teachers flag pages with potentially contentious content and document how a book will be used and aligned to state standards.

Administrators said supplemental approvals exist at both the district and school level: when a book is approved as a district supplemental resource for a particular grade band, any school may use it in that band; school-level supplemental approvals allow local discretion but require administrative sign-off and direct communication to parents. Toon noted the district maintains an appeal process in policy 4 I 200 for parents who dispute an adoption decision, and that parents have the right to request an alternative activity for an individual student.

Toon and Barney acknowledged low participation at public open houses since the 2023 law change: "Our open houses that we're holding now since 2023 are regularly not attended by anyone at all," Toon said, though he added they continue to hold and post them to satisfy statutory and policy requirements. Administrators also said the district will provide a book information sheet for parents and encouraged teachers to include course disclosures at the start of the year; a template is available for teachers who add a novel mid-course.

The presentation included an example: a book called Uprising was approved on consent in May; administrators explained that if the text is intended for whole-class use it will follow the instructional process (open houses and board review), but if it is used only in parts it will follow the supplemental process and be communicated to parents at the school level.

Board members asked clarifying questions about classroom libraries, digital materials and whether teacher practice would be constrained. Administrators said classroom-library titles used solely for free reading would be treated like library books, but if a teacher uses passages from a classroom book in instruction it becomes subject to the supplemental/instructional review and the sensitive-materials standard applies everywhere. Digital materials, they said, will comply with the same instructional vs supplemental distinctions and additional data-privacy and compatibility checks before adoption.

Administrators said Michelle Barney will convene teacher teams to review the existing merged list and reclassify texts into the two new lists; they will re-run an open house that experienced a Zoom link problem and then bring revised adoptions to the board for approval.